VMWare Server

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The 10 Best VMware Virtual Appliances

February 21, 2008 in Adsense, Appliances, Astaro, ESX, FreeBSD, Joomla, NagiOS, Nostalgia, OpenBSD, OpenSuSE, PHPMyAdmin, SNMP, Trac, VI, VI Client, VMWare Server, Virtual Center, Virtualisation, Wiki, linux, software, ubuntu, vm, wordpress | No comments

This list is subjective, and you’ve been warned!

All of these virtual appliances have been tested with ESX server, and may have issues elsewhere.

For appliances that needed it, I used VMware Converter, the version that ships with Virtual Infrastructure 3.5 (VI3.5).

Please note that both ESX 3.5 and Virtual Center 2.5 are available as trials from VMware currently, and I would highly recommend trying them out as it really is night and day compared to VMware Workstation, Server and Player.

That said, for the most part you’ll be fine working with VMware Server 2.0 – it’s free and has a special version of VMware Infrastructure Client to boot.

The list:

  1. Astaro Security Gateway – This is a must in any build for me. I use this to bridge between my LAN/WAN and the virtual networks that I create. There is a 10-device, 1000 connection “home user” license available from My Astaro that should be more than sufficient to get you up and running with a clean, secure virtual network.
  2. Ubuntu 7.10 JeOS Mini-image – this image weighs in at only 70MB or so, expands to roughly 200MB, has apt-get installed, and is a perfect candidate for building virtual appliances with. VMware tools is installed, so you don’t need to worry about things like date and time sync.
  3. OpenBSD 4.2 – The OpenBSD image is great for getting started in the OpenBSD world: learning the shell, commands, networking, and in my case, firewalling. The verison I use comes from Chrysaor.info, but feel free to use your own.
  4. OpenSuSE 10.3 – I can’t live without this virtual appliance – I use it for just about everything, and is the first appliance installed in any environment. Note that it is a bit bloated, containing USB, sound and other components typically not needed in a virtual environment. On the other hand, since it’s tried and tested on my end, it’s a lifer.
  5. Trac – I use Trac as a wiki and VM staging log. I consider all VMs, hosts and Virtual Center as software projects, and monitor changes closely. If ever I need to pull up quick info about a virtual machine, host, network, router or firewall, it’s all in Trac.
  6. Wordpress – I use my Wordpress virtual machine to stage different versions of blandname, to test updates, upgrades, and plugins. This also allows me to change themes, move Adsense blocks around, and generally to play without fear of losing revenue or breaking something.

    7. Read the rest of this entry »

VMware: Workstation, ACE, Player, Server releases

September 20, 2007 in Server 2008, VMTN, VMWare, VMWare Server, VMware ACE, Virtual, Virtual Machine, Virtualisation, software, virtualization, vm, workstation | No comments

From the VMware blog:
“Workstation 6.0.1, ACE 2.0.1, and Player 2.0.1 have all been released. These updates address security issues, introduce new functionality, and broaden guest OS support, including experimental support for 32-bit and 64-bit Windows Server 2008 (code name Longhorn).In addition, Workstation 5.5.5, ACE 1.0.4, Player 1.0.5, and Server 1.0.4 have also been released. These updates address security and functionality issues.”

This is interesting because there are new versions of products to talk about, along with new features.

What really made US happy, was seeing that security is still a concern on older releases – specifically VMware Workstation 5.5 (now 5.5.5), which many developpers use to this day for many reasons.

Distro of the week: Berry Linux

November 2, 2006 in Berry Linux, Fedora, OSS, Open Source, OpenSource, Physical Machine, RedHat, SourceForge, VMWare, VMWare Server, Virtual, Windows XP, Windows XP SP2, XGL, XP, boot from cd, japanese, linux, livecd, operating system, os, pc, software, virtual machines, virtualization, vm, windows | No comments

Up until a few years ago I was getting fed up trying to show Japanese friends that linux was a viable option to Windows XP SP2, because the input method that Linux used at the time quite truthfully stank. The conclusion was that with an English keyboard, Windows was the way to go because of the (then) fancy Japanese input method applet.

Later on, I found out about Berry Linux, a Japanese LiveCD distro based on RedHat/Fedora that can easily show off Linux and allow users to do things like compose email that Japanese people can actually read (common problem on Windows), and surf the web in Japanese by default, instead of having to manually choose codepages and the like, which frustrates must computer users (if they haven’t already given up).

Berry Linux got an update today (to version 0.75), and now supports fancy-pants XGL – which I’m sure you’ll agree kicks Aero’s behind quite handily (footily?). If you’re trying to run Berry Linux Mini as a virtual machine you’ll get a console instead of X and you’ll lose the XGL capabilities, so I’d recommend testing it on a physical machine instead of a virtual machine – it’s a LiveCD so it’s quite safe to do so.

Berry LinuxBerry LinuxBerry Linux

Here’s a feature rundown taken from the Berry Linux site’s English page (corrected a few typos):

    Common Features:

  • Support for Kernel-2.6. ALSA, ACPI, selinux.
  • Overlay Filesystem Support.
  • XGL, 3D Desktop, support.
  • Berry Linux is not necessary to install. (Root partition is in the RAMdisk using initrd, all commands are operated by being transfered from CD-ROM)
  • It can install on Windows without parting partitions to use Setup.exe or install.bat. (Using squashfs/cloop/loopback device)
  • It can install to your hard disk on Linux. (Use Berry Linux Installer or Copy under /BERRY/, and set up LILO or grub)
  • Berry Linux can boot from USB-HDD/memory.
  • Berry Linux uses WHIZ, a very sharp Kana-Kanji conversion system. (WHIZ Project)
  • If you push the windows key, and show the K-Menu.
  • Automatically recognizes USB storage, and show icons.
  • Berry Linux uses free Japanese True Type Fonts.
  • Berry Linux uses bootsplash when booting.
  • Berry Linux uses DHCP to connect the Network. (If you’d like to use PPPoE, you should setting up it on the Terminal)
  • It’s possible to save personal setting.
  • Red Hat Fedora compatible.
  • Using new technologies.
    Berry Linux’s Features:

  • You can listen to mp3 using BMP/XMMS, and play DVD/DivX using MPlayer, XINE and Kaffeine.
  • You can edit files of Microsoft Word, Excel by OpenOffice(TM).
    Berry Linux Mini’s Features:

  • Minimum Linux environment is available by using Berry Linux Mini.
  • Its file size is very small. (148.0MB)
  • It’s light. Because of the Window Manager is Fluxbox.
  • You can enjoy comfortable Linux environment.
    Berry Linux Server’s Features: (Published Berry Linux Mini as alpha version)

  • Build the Linux Server easily.
  • Minimum Server Linux enviroment is available by using Berry Linux Server.
  • Its file size is very small. (161.3MB)
  • It’s light. Because of the Window Manager is WindowMaker.
  • You can enjoy comfortable Linux enviroment.

    To do:

  • Support Software Suspend.
  • Support Captive NTFS.

You can grab Berry Linux from the SourceForge page or the Berry Linux main page – but I’d recomend using SourceForge if you are in North America as it is much faster.

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